The cinereous warbling finch is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is endemic to Brazil. The term cinereous describes its colouration. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Region
Brazilian Cerrado and Caatinga
Typical Environment
Found in dry open landscapes including cerrado savanna, caatinga thorn-scrub, and dry grasslands with scattered shrubs. It frequents shrublands, edges of open woodlands, and second-growth thickets, often near watercourses with gallery vegetation. The species also uses lightly grazed pastures and fallows where native shrubs persist. It avoids dense closed forest but benefits from heterogeneous mosaics of scrub and grass.
Altitude Range
200–1200 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
The cinereous warbling finch is an ashy-gray tanager of Brazil’s open dry habitats, where males deliver a mellow, warbling song from shrub tops. Its name “cinereous” refers to its ash-colored plumage. It depends on intact patches of cerrado and caatinga vegetation and is threatened by agricultural expansion and habitat fragmentation. Protecting native scrub mosaics and riparian thickets is key to its long-term survival.
Temperament
discreet and wary
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Typically seen singly or in pairs during the breeding season, becoming more gregarious in small groups at other times. Nests are cup-shaped and placed low in shrubs, with both parents attending the young. It forages deliberately from the ground up to mid-shrub level.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A mellow, musical warble delivered in short phrases, often from exposed perches. Calls include soft chips and trills used to maintain contact in low shrubs.
Plumage
Overall ashy-gray with paler throat and underparts, slightly darker face and lores, and faint pale edging on the wings. The back and crown are uniform gray, giving a clean, understated look.
Diet
Feeds on a mix of grass and weed seeds, small fruits, and arthropods such as beetles, caterpillars, and spiders. It picks seeds from stems and probes among leaf litter. During breeding, insects form a higher proportion of the diet to provision nestlings. Seasonal availability of seeding grasses strongly influences foraging sites.
Preferred Environment
Forages along shrub-lined edges, open scrub, and weedy pastures with scattered bushes. It uses low vegetation layers and the ground, often moving methodically through thickets and field margins.
